Rotherham’s street cleaning teams have been bolstered with new staff and equipment thanks to investment from Rotherham Council.
Last year, as part of its commitment to creating vibrant communities, the Council committed £300,000 to street cleaning and equipment. As a result, the borough’s busiest areas, including the town centre, Swinton, Wath, Dinnington and Maltby are seeing more frequent cleaning with better equipment.
Plus, thanks to the investment, the town centre cleaning team has been bolstered with eight new staff, with more recruitment on the way to help keep the wider borough clean.
Equipped with a powerful litter vacuum, nicknamed ‘Billy Goat’, the town centre team completes multiple cleaning rounds each day as well as daily road sweeping of 57 priority streets in and around the town centre. Meanwhile, increased weekend staffing is keeping the town centre clean on a Saturday and Sunday.
Public spaces are also getting more attention, with extra time dedicated to weeding, frequent seating clean-ups, and a dedicated grounds maintenance crew enhancing the borough’s green spaces.
As the town continues to see investment in regeneration projects like Forge Island – which is set to welcome its first restaurants, Vetro Lounge and Sygnature Dish in the coming months - the increased cleaning is making sure residents and visitors experience a well-maintained and welcoming environment.
Beyond the town centre, the Council has also introduced a large road sweeper and ride-on lawn mowers to keep the borough tidy. More specialist maintenance equipment - including a tractor, handheld grounds tools, and additional litter pickers - will be deployed later this year to keep roadsides and countryside verges clean.
In response to public feedback, mini-sweepers now operate weekly on the high streets and nearby roads of Swinton, Wath, Dinnington and Maltby.
Cllr Chris Read, Leader of Rotherham Council, said: "Keeping Rotherham clean and welcoming is a priority for us because we know how much it matters to our residents. Our teams are out there every day, working hard to make sure our streets stay looking their best.
“We have and will continue to invest to make the borough a clean and welcoming environment. In the past two years, we’ve invested £2.7 million into street cleaning. This investment isn’t just about having a cleaner town – it’s about creating a place we can all be proud of."